Raising a Humid Flag
Enough women over thirty are at Redbones
for the smell of Dixie Peach to translate the air.
I drink when I’m there because you must have
some transparency in this life and you can’t see
through the glass till it’s empty.
Of course I get next to men with broad feet
and bull nostrils to ward off isolation.
You go to Redbones after you’ve been
everywhere else and can see the rainbow
as fraud, a colorful frown.
The best part is after midnight
when the crowd at its thickest raises
a humid flag and hotcombed hair reverts
to nappy origins. I go to Redbones
to put an end to denial.
Dixie Peach is a heavy pomade like
canned-ham gelatin. As it drips
down foreheads and necks, it’s like tallow
dripping down candles in sacred places.
źródło: Read A Little Poetry
10.09.2026